NEC Display Solutions Europe is working with the Odeon and UCI Cinemas Group, Europe's largest cinema operator, to upgrade all of its theatres across the country to use NEC digital projectors.

NEC
was selected due to the reliability and excellent quality of the projectors and
underpinned by the seven-year partnership between the two companies. The deal
sees more than 2,100 theatres across Odeon UCI's 231 cinemas in the UK,
Ireland, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy and Portugal upgraded to one of the
four digital cinema projectors available from NEC.

This
project is due to be completed in January 2012 and will deliver an enhanced
cinema going experience for movie lovers across the continent. Not only do
these digital projectors provide a better quality and more reliable image, but
also provide greater flexibility for repurposing theatres to easily adapt
showings based on time of day and viewer demand. Similarly, digital projectors
allow for the streaming of alternative content such as live sporting events or
theatre performances.

For
Odeon UCI, upgrading fully to digital projectors also provides a host of efficiency
benefits, including easier content distribution – thanks to no longer needing
large reels to be shipped around and stored – central control of adverts and
trailers, as well as simpler theatre operation and better monitoring and
control of each individual projector.

The
long-standing partnership between NEC and UCI extends across all levels and all
geographies, giving UCI the peace-of-mind that in the event of problems
arising, there is a solid support structure in place to deal with the issue
quickly and with minimal downtime.

"We
strive to deliver the most engaging cinema experience for our customers, and
this means not only providing the best movies, but also delivering them on the
best equipment possible," said xxx, xxx at the Odeon and UCI Cinemas
Group. "We've been working closely
with NEC for over seven years now, and consistently been impressed by the
quality of the products and the level of support provided, at every single
level."

"The
digitisation of cinema production and screening processes help mitigate concerns
about increasing manual operating costs, security and environmental issues, but
most importantly it provides the best cinema experience possible," said Mark
Kendall, Business Development Manager for Digital Cinema at NEC Display
Solutions Europe. “NEC has been a pioneer in digital cinema technologies from
the outset, creating a track record of success in this area and this project,
combined with our long standing relationship with Odeon UCI reinforces that
position.”

Once
the digital projector installations are complete, NEC will be working with
Odeon UCI to discuss the possibilities of expanding the partnership to include
digital signage options for the foyers and network operations centres for more
centralised control of each theatre and smoother management of the entire
content delivery lifecycle.